In fact, Houston could send Springer out on a rehab outing as soon as this weekend.

That's according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart, who quoted manager A.J. Hinch as feeling somewhat anxious about how little time is left in the season: "It would be nice to get him out as soon as possible. Part of it is Sept. 1 is coming. That's not a deadline for him, but part of it is getting him out and playing as an everyday player again. I'd like him to have some regular-season at-bats in the Minor Leagues before their season ends, and the clock is ticking a little bit with that."

He's been out since early July with a fractured wrist, but took batting practice with the team on Wednesday and will do so again on Friday before the Astros take on the Minnesota Twins. If all goes well with that, the team could very well accelerate his rehab and send him out on a stint with either Double-A Corpus Christi or Triple-A Fresno.